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Milwaukee takes four of five baseball awards

Milwaukee infielder Michael Porcaro was named Player of the Year, freshman catcher Mitch Ghelfi won Newcomer of the Year, Jake Long took Pitcher of the Year, and head coach Scott Doffek won Coach of the Year honors as the regular season champion Milwaukee Panthers took every major baseball award the Horizon League offers except Reliever of the Year.

From Michael Raines' Horizon League release:

Porcaro led the Horizon League with a .326 batting average and 40 runs scored. He also ranked second with 39 RBI and tied for third with 63 hits, including 14 doubles, four triples and a home run. The sophomore went 8-for-8 in stolen base attempts and was hit by a pitch five times. Defensively, the second baseman posted a .971 fielding percentage, committing just six errors in 123 total chances.

Ghelfi batted .321, good for eighth in the Horizon League. He collected 43 hits, including nine doubles, one triple and three home runs. The freshman scored 18, recorded 17 RBI and went 6-for-9 in stolen base attempts. Defensively, the freshman catcher posted an incredible .995 fielding percentage, committing just one error in 194 total chances, throwing out 16 of 29 would-be base stealers.

Long went 7-3 with four complete games and three shutouts in 12 games (nine starts). His seven wins were good for second-most in the Horizon League while his 1.82 ERA paced the conference and his 74.0 innings pitched were the ninth-most. The senior held opponents to a .245 batting average and allowed just six extra-base hits all season. From mid-to-late March, Long was named the Horizon League Pitcher of the Week on three consecutive occasions.

For leading Milwaukee to a Horizon League regular season title despite contending with inclement weather throughout the season, Scott Doffek earned Coach of the Year honors. The Panthers went 28-19 overall and 14-7 in conference play, earning the No. 1 seed in this week's Horizon League tournament. Milwaukee faced adversity from Mother Nature all season, playing only 13 games at Henry Aaron Field one at Miller Park, home of the Brewers. The squad won each of those contests, including three-game sweeps of UIC and Youngstown State.

Milwaukee takes a swing at the Horizon League Tournament championship this weekend in Youngstown, Ohio. All games will be able to be seen on the Horizon League Network.